Here and I thought I was going to have to write about us getting no hit AGAIN. Cashner, not exactly a great pitcher like Cain, mowed em down 1,2,3 – except for one walk, to Jed Lowrie, for 6.1 innings. Lots of staring Ks, thanks to the HP ump’s large and ever changing strike zone, and grounders and lazy fly balls. One really well hit ball and that was a liner smoked to the first baseman.
Dallas Keuchel had managed to allow only 1 run over his 6 innings, a solo homer on a FB right down the dead middle of the plate. He didn’t have the stuff or control he had last game, walking 4, giving up 3 singles in 96 pitches over 6 innings. He just barely made it out of the 6th – got a grounder, then gave up an IF single that he tried to get a glove on. Then a 5 pitch walk – got one of those as a called strike, but it was one of the HP ump’s bad calls. Another 5 pitch walk with ball 4 being a pitch that was called a strike 2 ABs ago. Bases loaded. Then a 7 pitch called K on yet another of the HP ump’s crazy calls. Then, with bases still loaded, a flyout to center.
End of 6, Astros losing 1-0.
7th inning, Rhiner Cruz comes in, gets 1,2, E-5, 3 (and CJ had NO excuse for that ball under his glove) and for the first time in a LONG time, he looked like the Rhiner Cruz who pitched in April.
Cashner cruising, gets Lowrie out, then Carlos Lee hits a clean single to left center. What a relief. Then Bogu comes up, takes 2, fouls off 7, and hits the next pitch into the upper deck in right. Goo-bah nono, goo-bah shutout.
Astros 2 Pads 1
8th inning: Julio Daniel walks, Scott Moore, playing second, gets his first Astros hit, singles to right and JD is on 3rd, then scores on a WP for an insurance run. Which is a good thing because unless the pitch is down the middle, hitters don’t know whether it’s a ball or strike.
Astros 3 Pads 1
Brandon Lyon gives up a single, gets 2 outs, then Wesley Wright comes in and gets the 3rd out. Millsie-poo does NOT trust Lyon to get leftys out at ALL.
9th: the ol WB comes in to close, gives up a double off the scoreboard his first pitch. Not a good sign. Then gets a 6-3. Then a single and men on first and 3rd. Then CJ makes a REALLY egregious error on what SHOULD have been a 5-4-3 and the run scores. Then a single and bases are loaded. Then a bases loaded HBP to tie the game. Then a swinging K. Then a grand slam to Alexi Amarista.
Padres 7 Stros 3
Yeah, I know the inning shoulda been over, or at least there shoulda been 2 outs, 1 run scored if CJ had gotten that ball. But he didn’t give up the next single or the HBP and he CERTAINLY didn’t give up the grand slam. That’s on Myers himself, who has looked, uh, tired lately – the 5 runs given up to KC 5 games ago, the 2 runs he let score the other night, the 6 runs tonight.
Xavier Cedeno has come in after him and cleaned up 3 times. Maybe HE should close.
Huston Street mows down the Stros – hard to believe it has been TEN years since he was the closer for the WS winning Longhorns. What I remember from those games is that the announcers announced about 50 times per game that Huston’s father was a college football player on a winning team. And it doesn’t say much for a series when all i can remember is that the announcers were obsessed with some college FOOTBALL player.
sigh
Off to Wrigley, where Bud Norris, fresh off the DL, to face lefty Paul Maholm, who has a 5.38 ERA AND his lowest ERA this year has been 4.05. He’s always pitched well against the Astros, too. In fact, he’s pitched better against the Astros than every other ML team who he has faced at least 7 times – except the Braves. At Wrigley, over 130 IP, he has a 4.87 ERA and a 1.34 WHIP over 18 games pitched.
Bud has pitched twice at Wrigley, once starting and once in relief, giving up 5 R/ 2 ER over 9.1 IP with 11 H, 2 HR, 1 BB, 9 K. Small sample size, yeah. But tomorrow is gonna be hot and the wind is gonna be blowing out and Paul Maholm has already given up 7 homers in 7 games there this year.
Tags: Houston Astros, San Diego Padres
The thought of getting “NO” hit again tonight was really p$ssing me off. I’d rather lose the way we lost, than to get a no-no. Myers is human…….it happens.
i really REALLY thought we were gonna get no hit again – it felt like 05 again. this lineup is really missing altuve. who is still not ready to come back, no surprise. this waiting around to put guys on the DL is driving me crzy – i suppose they didn’t so we can have SOME player on the all-star team
I thought bringing in Wright for Lyon was less about trust in Lyon’s abilities and more about the batter’s dramatic L/R splits and holding the pinch runner on 1st base with a singles hitter up to bat. It seemed like a smart move to me.
Hopefully the Wrigley games turn into slugfests. I don’t trust the bullpen to protect a lead in a low-scoring game.
neil,
lyon is “supposed to” be the setup man – and if your second best reliever can’t get leftys out, he ain’t much of a setup man and he’s gonna be really tough to trade (remember the 5 mill)
i otherwise know it’s a pretty routine switch…
Lisa,
Just to needle you, remember me saying CJ was a “below average glove at 3b ? And now he’s up to 12 errors especially that Myers unraveling error in the 9th last night when we discussed sinkerball pitching and the Astros’ infield ?
But I’m concerned about Myers. Even with CJ’s error, Myers had NOTHING going, but I’m pretty sure the E-5 messed him up. I’m beginning to wonder if there’s something wrong with Myers.
Bud is pitching tonight..not sure which Norris we’re gonna get – the Norris of the last few games (ugh !) or Bud the Card Killer.
yeh i DO remember – and he HAD been doing pretty well – but has had like 4 effups in the last week – but he’s made some really REALLY good plays too and hasn’t been making lots of those stupid overthrow errors as he did when he first came up.
the E-5 should not have messed up an old pro like myers – his first pitch almost left the park and he wasn’t locating